Dec 3, 2007 8:43 am US/Eastern
Prosecutors: Dodds Staged Disappearance
DOVER, N.H. (WBZ) ―
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Gary Dodds leaving Portsmouth Regional Hospital in April 2006.
CBS
When the trial of former N.H. Congressional Candidate Gary Dodds begins Monday, prosecutors will accuse the politician of staging his disappearance as a publicity stunt to bolster new life into his campaign.
Dodds, 42 of Rye, crashed his car on the Spaulding Turnpike in April 2006 - then vanished. A massive search ensued. The candidate was found the next day in the woods by search dogs - soaking wet under a pile of leaves and suffering hypothermia.
Dodds told authorities that after he crashed his car, he wandered away in a daze, swam across a river and huddled in the woods for warmth until he was found a day later.
Prosecutors made it clear early on that they did not believe his story. Police questioned why only certain articles of Dodds' clothing were wet and why his body showed an absence of frostbite.
Dodds was indicted in April on charges of creating false public alarm and falsifying evidence. He faces up to two years in jail if convicted.
According to court filings, prosecutors will argue that Dodds fabricated the story and "falsified his physical appearance in an attempt to gain publicity to help propel his campaign for the United States Congress."
Dodds went on to lose the First District Democratic primary by a large margin to Carol Shea-Porter.
Dodds has maintained all along that the incident was nothing but an accident. According to witness lists, both he and his wife intend to testify at the trial.
Jury selection begins Monday.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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